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 282 OUR HYMNS :

in his &quot; Recreations,&quot; &quot; the close connection there is between a pure heart and a fine fancy ; the simplest feelings and thoughts he intertwines with the flowers of poetry, filling his readers with surprise that they are capable of such adornment, and with pleasure that the adornment becomes them adding wonder to love.&quot; To this it may justly be added, that here and there we find in his hymns verses that we feel to be poetry of a high order. Take for instance his noble missionary hymn (1825)

&quot; Spirit of the living God,&quot; No. 992, and especially the Miltonic verse

&quot; Spirit of the Lord, prepare All the round earth her God to meet ; Breathe Thou, abroad like morning air, Till hearts of stone begin to beat.&quot;

Montgomery contributes forty-four hymns to the &quot; New Con gregational Hymn Book : &quot; there were sixty-eight of his in the old &quot; Congregational Hymn Book.&quot;

&quot; Servants of God, in joyful lays.&quot; No. 177. (Psalm cxiii.)

This is said to have been written while the poet was at Mir- field, and but a youth.

&quot;Angels, from the realms of glory.&quot; No. 343.

This advent hymn (1825) for comprehensiveness, appi o- priateness of expression, force, and elevation of sentiment, may challenge comparison with any hymn that was ever written in any language or country.

&quot;Father of eternal grace.&quot; No. 359.

This hymn appeared in Gardiner s &quot; Sacred Melodies,&quot; 1808, as we learn from a letter from W. Gardiner, given in &quot; Mont gomery s Memoirs, by Holland.&quot;

In this hymn we trace the influence of the author s Mora vian training. It is marked for its simplicity and spirituality, and for its expression of readiness for suffering with Christ, if

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